WMUR:

Gov. Chris Sununu said Thursday he will veto the congressional redistricting map approved by his fellow Republicans in the New Hampshire Legislature.

The map has been hotly debated for months. In the once-a-decade redistricting process, New Hampshire House Republicans completely redrew the state’s congressional lines to make the 1st District more Republican and the 2nd District more Democratic, attempting to give each party a safe seat on Capitol Hill.

On the Senate floor Thursday, Republicans pushed back against accusations of gerrymandering, a term that refers to drawing oddly shaped districts to cater to one party or the other….

Almost as soon as Senate Republicans passed the map on a party-line vote, Sununu announced he would veto it once it reaches his desk.

“It doesn’t really pass the smell test, right?” he said.

Sununu’s decision stunned lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. Republican representatives must now either come up with a new map or attempt a veto override.

“But I don’t think there’ll be the votes there to do that,” said Democratic Senate Minority Leader Donna Soucy. “Potentially, the districts could remain as they are.”